IPSTDS Chapter 42

Chapter 42

How pathetic must Yoon Noah have seemed to Seo Dowoong, for him to kiss him so carelessly?

Nahyuk let out a deep sigh, as if the ground beneath him would cave in.

He wiped his damp face roughly and lay down on the bed.

Seo Dowoong might come back—or be waiting outside—so he couldn’t bring himself to leave the room. He was immensely grateful that his room had a private bathroom.

As he lay there sighing out of habit, he felt the phone he’d tossed carelessly beside his pillow start to vibrate.

He wondered if it might be Seo Dowoong, but thankfully, the caller ID read Lee Kangil. Nahyuk answered the call.

“Hello?”

—How should I deal with someone who likes me enough to call me ‘honey’ but leaves my messages on read?

Kangil started off with his usual nonsense. Even in his bad mood, Nahyuk didn’t entirely hate that brazen tone.

“Sorry, I was busy.”

—Don’t tell me you met up with Kim Daon again?

“Yeah, Daon made me a meal.”

—…

He went silent, as if he had something to complain about.

“Why? Do you really hate me being close to Daon that much? But I like that Daon treats me sincerely. I don’t have anyone else like that.”

The journey hadn’t been smooth, but Nahyuk had managed to get along well with Kim Daon. They now called each other “hyung” and “dongsaeng” like real brothers.

It was a precious connection he hadn’t even had in his original life, so he wanted to hold on to it.

—…What about me?

“Huh?”

—Don’t you think I treat you sincerely?

“You… don’t you just find me entertaining? Though I do think you’re not as thoughtless as Seo Dowoong.”

Kangil could be a bit of a tease, but he’d helped Nahyuk several times. Nahyuk knew for sure that Kangil wasn’t a bad person.

—That stings. I work day and night for you, little wildcat, and you still can’t see how I feel?

“So you’re saying you really care about me? Not just because you find me amusing?”

—If you were just someone I found entertaining, I wouldn’t have driven like a maniac to your house because of Kim Daon’s provocation.

“Kangil, if you say stuff like that, I might get the wrong idea.”

Maybe he was just exhausted from everything with Seo Dowoong. Without realizing it, Nahyuk spoke from the heart. Normally, he wouldn’t have said anything like this.

Kangil didn’t respond, only staying quiet. Nahyuk opened his mouth again.

“…I once mistook someone else’s feelings and got hurt. They said confusing things like you do, and I thought they had fallen in love with me.”

—…

“But they hadn’t. They told me they didn’t love me.”

It was the first time Nahyuk had spoken about something that happened before becoming Yoon Noah. Letting it out felt oddly freeing.

“That wound ran deep, and I promised myself I’d never make that mistake again. So if you’re just messing around with vague feelings, I’d rather you stop.”

—Who says I’m playing around?

“So you’re not?”

—I’ve never played around with emotions. But I’ve never been in love either, so how would I know?

“That… kind of sounds like you’re saying you could fall in love with me, Kangil. I’m really prone to getting the wrong idea, you know…”

Maybe it was the way the rain had softened his heart. Nahyuk replied with unusual honesty.

—I might fall in love with you.

“…What?”

—Don’t act like I just confessed, idiot. I said I might fall in love with you, not that I already have.

Before he could respond, Kangil continued.

—I think about you more than anything these days.

Nahyuk had told himself time and again not to read too much into things people said. But that resolve faltered as his heart fluttered at Kangil’s words.

He didn’t know what to say.

—But let me make this clear. I didn’t say I love you, so don’t get the wrong idea.

“…”

—I’m hanging up. We’ll talk again in person later.

Before Nahyuk could answer, the call ended. He held the silent phone in his hand for a moment.

‘Looks like Kangil really does like me.’

Even if he’d never been in love before, Nahyuk wasn’t a fool. He understood what Kangil meant by those words.

Still, Kangil had made sure to clarify that he didn’t love him yet—so Nahyuk wouldn’t get confused. That openness and honesty was just like him.

Nahyuk smiled faintly, as if none of the upsetting things from earlier had happened.

Just one short call had lifted his mood.

* * *

The next morning, the moment Nahyuk opened his eyes, an unwelcome message awaited him on his phone.

—Noah, call me when you wake up.

It was a text from Jang Mi-ae, Yoon Noah’s mother.

There was no way it was out of genuine concern for his health. He figured there must be some other reason for it.

He thought briefly about calling her but ended up not doing so. He had a bad feeling he’d only get dragged into something troublesome.

All he could think was that he needed to avoid her as much as possible.

Instead of calling back, Nahyuk soaked in hot water for a long time and then ate a solid breakfast prepared by Chief Song.

After having tea post-meal, he dozed off again, only waking up a little after 1 p.m. Nahyuk lay curled up on the bed, basking in the sunlight spilling through the window.

“So warm…”

It was hard to believe it had rained just yesterday. Today’s weather was clear and bright. The breeze coming in through the slightly open window was pleasantly mild.

For some reason, he had a good feeling—as if something nice might happen.

Nahyuk enjoyed the quiet afternoon to his heart’s content.

But not long after, one of the household staff knocked on his door, breaking the peace.

“Young master, you have a visitor.”

“Who is it?”

“I’m not sure of the name… um… he was a very handsome guy who looked kind of like a delinquent.”

It must be Kangil.

Nahyuk guessed right away.

Despite always going on about being a busy working professional, Kangil had been dropping by a lot lately. Why had he come today?

Then, suddenly, Kangil’s words from last night resurfaced in his mind.

‘I’ve been thinking about you more than anything these days.’

He thinks about me the most, and yet he made sure to say he doesn’t love me.

A weak smile touched Nahyuk’s lips.

“Okay. I’ll be out soon.”

“Yes, young master.”

Finally getting out of his pajamas, Nahyuk stepped outside.

In the garage, a picture-perfect man leaned against his car.

As Nahyuk approached, the man lowered his sunglasses slightly, eyeing him with a cocky look.

“Hey, honey, I’m here.”

A ridiculous greeting, as always.

Nahyuk blinked, taken aback by the unexpected term. His face grew hot, certain his cheeks were burning.

He nearly ran up to Kangil and tapped him lightly on the shoulder.

“Are—are you insane? What kind of nickname is that?”

Kangil made no move to push his sunglasses back up. He just kept looking at Nahyuk and replied casually.

“You called me that yesterday.”

“That was from ‘yeoboseyo,’ as in ‘hello’…”

“Oh, I thought it was a pet name.”

“You said you don’t even love me yet, so stop using pet names like that.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Still full of mischief, Kangil opened the passenger door for him. Nahyuk got in without much suspicion, only questioning him once they were on the road.

“By the way, why are you here in broad daylight? Didn’t you say you were busy?”

From the driver’s seat, Kangil replied casually.

“Still busy, but I couldn’t focus on research at all, so I decided to just goof off.”

“Is that really okay?”

Leaning one arm on the wheel, Kangil stared straight at him. At some point, his sunglasses had been pushed up to his head, revealing the whites of his eyes in that sharp, intense gaze.

“Who’s going to fire me?”

“…”

“That research center’ll be mine one day anyway. Who’s gonna say anything?”

Kangil’s father was the hospital director and also in charge of the research center. No one would dare fire Kangil, the heir apparent.

“Wow. You’re right, but it sounds super arrogant.”

“I’ve got no interest in denying or downplaying what I have. Since I was born brilliant, I plan to live brilliantly.”

It was the kind of line that came from someone with unshakable confidence.

Nahyuk found himself staring at Kangil again.

‘Jealous. I want to be like that too.’

“Noah, why are you looking at me like I just moved you to tears? I know I’m kind of amazing, but did you just fall for me all over again? You’re totally giving me heart-eyes right now… Should I be getting fluttery?”

Kangil smirked and let out a petty laugh full of self-satisfaction.

“…Forget it.”

Okay, maybe not.

Nahyuk awkwardly fastened his seatbelt. Kangil was still chuckling as he gently turned the wheel.

They left the garage, and once the house was a bit farther behind, Nahyuk finally asked the obvious question.

“Kangil, where are we even going right now?”

Instead of answering, Kangil gently called his name.

“Hey, Noah.”

“Yeah?”

“You don’t have any plans or appointments today, do you?”

“Me? Well… My mom texted me earlier, but I didn’t reply. Other than that, nothing’s planned.”

“Really?”

“Why? Was there something I was supposed to do?”

“Well, if you don’t know, then I guess there isn’t.”

He had no idea what that meant. Kangil often said vague things like this—it made it hard to know what he was really thinking.

“What do you mean?”

“Want to find out?”

“Yeah.”

“Then stay with me today.”

It wasn’t a hard request.

Actually, for Nahyuk, it was a welcome one. Sure, lying around doing nothing was nice, but spending time with someone else wasn’t bad either.

Ever since becoming Yoon Noah, he’d somehow ended up among people. But who knew how long that would last? Better to enjoy it while he could.

Of course, Kangil seemed interested in him now, but honestly, Nahyuk wasn’t sure how long someone as unpredictable as him would stay that way.

Nahyuk wanted love, but he didn’t trust people easily. He didn’t want to believe in anyone who couldn’t give him absolute certainty.

He was so damn picky. Could he really fall in love and die with no regrets?

Nahyuk let out a bitter smile when Kangil wasn’t looking.